


Mukashi, mukashi...

by HotaruMuraki



Category: Saiunkoku Monogatari
Genre: Adorable!Ryuuki, Fluff, Gen, Humour, Lots of artistic license and liberties!, SMSSFE 2008
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-08-05
Updated: 2015-08-05
Packaged: 2018-04-12 20:22:11
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,559
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4493412
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HotaruMuraki/pseuds/HotaruMuraki
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Prompt: "<i>Mix and match as you like, but Sou, Ryuuki, and Seiran have a long and neglected history (and present!) together. So I would like either something about that, or . . . AU-ness! Start your thinking off with "What if . . .?" and go in whatever crazy direction it takes you! Brotherly cute is a plus.</i>"</p>
            </blockquote>





	Mukashi, mukashi...

**Author's Note:**

> This has been written for the Saiunkoku secret-santa fic exchange 2008 for [](http://grey-damaskena.livejournal.com/profile)[](http://grey-damaskena.livejournal.com/)**grey_damaskena**. (See 'Summary'/Prompt!)  
>  I sincerely hope I have done the prompt at least some justice. I'll let you guys be the judges of whether I managed to pull off that 'brotherly cute'! *winks*  
> Required characters: Sou Taifu, Ryuuki, Seiran, Kanshou, Bakuya  
> Disclaimer: ...........................yeah, one can always wish and hope and dream, right? >__<;; Anyway, me not own. *sniffs*

  


Soft, barely audible crying and the occasional muffled hiccup finally led him on the trail to his precious little brother. The 12-year-old sighed, wondering with a kind of weary anger what his inept, stupid, malicious, good-for-nothing elder brothers had done or said _this_ time. For timid Ryuuki to retreat to _this_ place... Seien shook his head. Even the oafs he had to call 'elder brothers' didn’t dare come here. Or, rather, didn’t bother. After all, those were just stories and legends made up by illiterate peasants, right?

Again, Seien couldn’t help but snicker derisively at the thought of, for example, Iruden writing or – the Eight Sages forbid! – reading. Ryuuki with his six years of age already knew more kanji than that...blockhead ever would! Thinking of his elder brothers, however, only made Seien frown. He had to find Ryuuki, and he had to find him _now_! Because the seven-tiered pagoda was not safe at night, was, in fact, _never_ safe. Just like it wasn't always safe to question that crafty old man, Sou Taifu; for when that esteemed war hero decided to answer, he _always_ meant what he said, his reply striking to the core. And he was fearlessly saying what he thought outright. Oh yes, Seien himself was rightfully wary. He had learned from pretty early on, in bitter lessons, that such behaviour only went unpunished when you had the political strength and personal power to back it up. Or else you would soon find yourself on the wrong end of a sword – if you were lucky. But... A smiling face was worse, in Seien's oppinion; only a prelude to more deceit and political scheming most of the time. The only smile that he, Seien, was going to believe in was little Ryuuki's!

Firmly nodding to himself, the young prince proceed deeper into the pagoda. The small, shuttered lantern he had brought with him was only _just_ enough to light his way, throwing everything else into suspicious shadows. And in shadows, nothing good ever hid – just assassins and other bad things – as Imperial princes knew only too well... But for Ryuuki he would brave more than that!

Seien paused in front of an ornate door. Here the sniffles and hiccups he thought he had heard at the entrance were the loudest. Cautiously approaching the intricate inlays of ebony and ivory, Seien put his hand on one of the dragon-formed knobs and pulled. Nothing. Then he blinked, suddenly remembering something the old fox, Shou Taishi, had once mentioned in passing... Feeling rather sheepish at the moment, Seien _pushed_ – and the right half of the door noiselessly opened up into the room.

Advancing cautiously into the dim, moon-lit room, Seien soon discoeverd who he had come looking for in the middle of the night: his sweet, innocent little brother lay in a dishevelled, crying heap at the foot of a small platform, hair in disarray and robes mopping the dusty floor. Seien, usually rather peaceful, was seething silently. Oh, if his elder brothers had been in front of him right now...

"......Ryuuki..." He had to keep the anger from his voice and his tone soft and even. Ryuuki was distraught enough alr—

"Aniue!" A small form hurled itself at the prince, throwing itself into the embrace promising warmth and safety and love. "Seien-aniue... You found me. *hiccup* You really came to find me...!" Ryuuki squeezed harder, burrowing his head further into the chest of his beloved brother. "Now I _know_ Saburo-nii was lying!!" He raised his head and Seien found himself looking at the tear-streaked face of his golden-eyed little brother beaming up at him, faith in the world – or at least the one person Ryuuki was sure was loving him unconditionally – completely restored.

"...It's okay now, Ryuuki," Seien murmured soothingly, unconsciously tightening his embrace. "I'm here. What these idiots talk about is _not_ true, you hear me?" Ryuuki nodded as Seien petted his hair in comfort, snuugling closer until he was nearly sitting in his older brother's lap. "......what did these imbeciles say _this_ time, anyway?" 'Just so I know what to thrash them for come next weapon's training.....'

Ryuuki hesitated, clearly uncomfortable with the subject. "I-Iruden-nii was saying that I was just a useless waste of air and space." Seien was already planning on how to humiliate Iruden-idiot on the next possible occasion. "And then," Ryuuki continued in a dwindling voice, "Saburo-nii said that not even the ghosts in the pagoda would want me." The older boy wondered whether he could get away with breaking Saburo-stupid's jaw. How _dare_ he...!!! "...Iruden-nii laughed after that, saying that even if I went missing _there_ , no one would bother looking for me..." Ryuuki looked at the floor, sniffling sadly.

Seien no longer cared about getting away. He _would_ make those...those _bastards_ pay! For that and for everything else they had done to his defenseless darling of a brother.

First things first, however. And first of all, he had to cheer Ryuuki up somehow. But how...? Seien looked around the room for inspiration, only now noticing how bare it was except—Yes, that would do nicely. And Ryuuki loved stories...

"Ryuuki?"

"Yes, Seien-aniue?"

"...Do you know what this room is?"

"......." Embarrassed silence, then a small "...no."

"This is the place where—" Seien gestured towards the small platform in front of them. "—Kanshou and Bakuya are kept."

Ryuuki clutched at him again, frightened that two fearsome monsters would suddenly jump out and attack them. Seien-aniue was incredibly strong but against two monsters, he—

"The legendary twin swords," the older prince explained gently.

Oh. Ryuuki blinked. In that case... It was okay. Seien-aniue _was_ good with a sword, much, _much_ better than their elder brothers although they were _way_ older than him! Ryuuki had heard even Shogun Sou Taifu say so, once...!

Seien stood up. Taking Ryuuki's clammy hand into his own, slightly larger one, he led his little brother to the platform, holding the lantern higher so that Ryuuki could get a good look at the two swords. In this way, they stood in front of the platform, well, not really a _platform_ per se. It was more like a small, low table than anything else...

"This," Seien pointed at the white-hilted sowrd in its white, glittering sheath. "This is 'Kanshou'. And this sword—" A small gesture towards the sword with the black hilt and ebony, gleaming sheath. "...is called 'Bakuya'."

Ryuuki just stood there, radiating a kind of child-like, impressed awe.

Seien smiled. "How about it? Do you want to know the story?"

"Indeed, _do_ you want to know their story?", a well-known, gravelly voice asked from behind them.

Seien instinctively put himself in front of Ryuuki, shielding the smaller body with his own, slightly larger frame. He'd seriously prefer a ghost or two right now instead of... "Sou Taifu." The older prince nodded in greeting, feeling Ryuuki's hands surreptiously grab the back of his robes.

The aged Genreal chuckled, clearly amused at this show of manners even under such...unusual cirumstances. Yes, this was his top-student indeed! Eyes twinkling merrily, brightened with a glee Seien was quickling growing _veeeeery_ suspicious of, he continued, "Well? Do you want to know their story, the story of Kanshou and Bakuya?"

Reluctantly and, in Seien's case, wary of Sou Taifu's motives, the two brothers nodded.

From the-kami-knew-where, the Grand General pulled up three cushions and placed them on two opposite sides of the 'table'. Waiting for the two children across from him to settle down, the large, old man silently mused on how...ironic it was for _him_ to be telling that particular story... He sighed. And after such a long, long time, too.

When he felt two pairs of curious eyes on him, Sou Taifu was rudely jolted back to the present. Hiding his momentary absent-mindedness behind a kind, rather un-SouTaifu-like smile, he asked the two young princes, "Ready? ...For a bit of nightly story-telling...?"

While young Seien just looked a bit annoyed at his questions, little Ryuuki looked positively delighted. Both princes nodded. However, both of them knew quite well how busy Sou Taifu usually was, so both of them appreciated the old man making some time for them...especially in the middle of the night like this. Although Seien, at least, couldn't help but wonder what the _Grand General_ , of all people, was doing at the Eight Sages' Pagoda.....

Sou Taifu's clearing his throat brought the older prince out of his musings. Soon after that, the story was begun.....

"Mukashi, mukashi..."

"Huh?"

"That—" Sou Taifu chuckled a little. "—is how stories were begun when I was young."

'That must have been some centuries ago, then,' Seien thought, mentally sniggering at the thought of Sou Taifu in diapers.

"Anyway, please do not interrupt again or I might lose concentration."

After receiving solemn looks and nods from both princes, the Grand General started again. "Once upon a time... At the time of the third emperor after First Emperor Sougen, Emperor Saihitei had two sons, twins, born to him by his favourite concubine, most beloved Nuriko. The fair-haired boy was named 'Kanshou' while his dark-haired brother was named 'Bakuya'. Both children were fair of face and beautiful of form, loved by servants, citizens and nobles alike. And yet... As Kanshou and Bakuya slowly grew to adulthood, differences began to show; for even though both had the same mother and father, were, in fact, born at the same time, they differed greatly in character and conduct. Where Bakuya was patient, Kanshou was...not, and where Kanshou was gentle, Bakuya was fierce. Kanshou greatly excelled at the scholarly arts whereas Bakuya was without parallel as a warrior. Therefore they soon became known as 'Fair Kanshou' and 'Fierce Bakuya'. ...It is, for example, Kanshou we owe the Saihongi to; and Bakuya was the one who almost single-handedly drove back the vicious Firyun at Tung Shao Pass. Anyway, those matters occurred later in their lives. But...these are different stories that might be told at other times."

Sou Taifu mock-glared at them, his winking at a rather frightened Ryuuki making the young boy relax again.

"For now, both princes were no longer children but neither were they men yet. Such a difficult age! And since the garden is always greener on the other side of the wall, Bakuya soon came to desire surpassing his brother's scholarly and artistic accomplishments whereas Kanshou was burning to gain more recognition as warrior and martial artist. Alas and alack, both brothers conveniently forgot their own considerable merits the other's field of specialty. Thus they more and more often came to blows and harsh words where a peaceful gesture or a kind word would have been more appropriate."

The aged Grand General sighed, not really looking forward to what came next.

"Forgetting they were brothers by heart as well as blood, Kanshou and Bakuya continued their...quarrel, for lack of a better word. So much so, in fact, that in time, it spilled over into the Courts, dividing nobles and servants alike into two factions. Soon, it took only the slightest of incidents, a spilled cup of tea for example, and they were at each other's throats. Meanwhile Emperor Saihitei, being sick of his two favourite sons' constant warring against each other, decided to take drastic measures. He called on both of them to appear him and, as they stood in front of his throne, told them, "This stupid ...battle of yours has gone on long enough. We will _not_ have you two tear everything apart just because of your absolutely ridiculous perceived short-comings. Thus We have come to a deicison: since you, Kanshou, and you, Bakuya, can not live together in peace, you shall henceforth live apart. It is thus Our decree that you depart from Shi-syu at the soonest auspicious date. Kanshou, you will depart for the east, taking up the post of assistant governor at Koku Province. Bakuya, you will be filling the post of assistant shogun at Haku Province in the west." Ignoring the looks of outrage and stuttering attempts at protest, Emperor Saihitei firmly said, "This decision We have made is final. You _will_ leave the day after tomorrow." And since Bakuya and Kanshou both were, despite their quarrelling with each other, loyal sons and subjects, they obeyed their father, Emperor Saihitei – resignedly but without further arguments."

Sou Taifu, more used to yelling orders across a battlefield than speaking normally to children, drew a deep, shuddering breath before continuing, "It is said that on the day the two brother's left in opposite directions, not only the people but also the heavens shed tears. Kanshou and Bakuya might have been crying as well – but with all that rain pouring down... Who could really tell for certain? As they stood in front of the palace gates, their horses and retinue ready and waiting, the two brothers embraced one last time, each whispering encouragement to the other, "I will write to you, dearest brother." and "Chichi-ue won't keep us apart forever, you'll see." You see, even though the siblings had fought, they never doubted their hearts nor their father's love for them. ...Ah, and that hope, that they would be allowed to return and be reunited with each other, was what kept Bakuya and Kanshou going those next few years. Those years were well spent, however. Fair Kanshou's station in Eastern Koku had, despite many duties, allowed him enough time to improve as a warrior. At his post in the west of Haku, Fierce Bakyua had, despite his rather demanding station, found time and opportunities enough to pursue his scholarly studies. So in the course of a few years, the reason for their...dispute had been removed and by themselves, no less! (Naturally, both of them had persevered in their original fields of expertise, too!) Neither felt inferior to the other any longer. They were not jealous of each other anymore; in fact, both of them felt calm, self-assured and, over all, content with their lives. Now Kanshou and Bakuya both no longer thought of the grass on the other side of the wall as greener than on their own." Sou Taifu chuckled. "Oh yes, they were growing up indeed. Into fine, handsome young men worthy of their title and station in life."

"...And then, about eight years after the two of them had been...sent away from the capital, the desired event occured. Via Imperial Courier, they each received a letter bearing the Imperial Seal. In their father own hand, Bakuya and Kanshou were informed of the birth of Emperor Sahitei's third son and, _finally_ , the long-await command to return."

The large shogun smiled softly. 'Almost as if he'd been there,' Seien thought. 'But that's impossible, right?' After a deep, heart-felt sigh, Sou Taifu went on.

"Both princes vowed to never ever fight against each other again. So in order to confirm this vow in the presence of the kami and the elements, they climbed the highest tower in their castles on the eve of their last day on their posts. You see, Kanshou and Bakuya had previously agreed upon this: should they ever be allowed to return to their home and family, the brothers would entrust their resolution to the winds, that they might carry the vow of their brotherly bond before the gods to judge and acknowledge. Unfortunately—" Here the Grand General coughed uncomfortably. "—on that particular night, an unusually strong thunderstorm was raging all over Saiunkoku, blots of lightning illuminating the sky while thunder rolled and torrential sheets of rain fell incessantly onto the land. However, neither one of the brothers let that deter him from his chosen path; so certain, so unshakable was their belief and faith in each other. Thus it came to be that at the call of midnight, Bakuya stood at the top of his tower in the west, princely garb drenched all through while Kanshou stood at the top of his tower in the east, also sopping wet, soaked to the skin. As if on some secret signal known exclusively to them, both brothers drew their sword at the same time, pointing it towards the turbulent skies and shouting, "This I vow, before Nature's fury, before all kami: never again will this one fight against his brother. From now on until the End of All, let Kanshou and Bakuya be together, so that we may serve the emperor and the country of Saiunkoku as two sides of the same coin. May the Eight Sages bear witness to this!"

BUWA———DON!!!

"The soldiers huddling in the respective doorways could only stare, their hair on end, eyes wide and blinded and mouths open in disbelieving shock. Some of them even fainted on the spot."

Here Sou Taifu paused again, for so long that Ryuuki, having squirmed onto his brother's lap some time ago, started to fidget. This seemed to shake the large General from whatever trance he had been in and, after embarrassedly clearing his throat, he continued...

"...when Bakuya's and Kanshou's respective retinues converged shortly before the capital and each party learned what had befallen the other, there were soon cries of "Divine signs!" or "Evil spells!"... The Imperial shogun sent to escort both parties through the capital just raised his eyebrows questioningly at the ruckus and wisely decided that more intelligent heads than he – namely, Emperor Saihitei himself – both had to hear of this _immediately_ and were better suited in dealing with this...situation. And this was how, ultimately, only a short while later, three rather terrified soldiers were kneeling in front of the Imperial throne."

"...."Well," Emperor Saihitei asked with barely veiled impatience, "Where are my sons?" The soldiers, too frightened speak let alone look up, just looked at each other helplessly. You could have heard a pin drop in the silence of the court. Not one official moved. Then a slow, rhythmic tapping sound could be heard. The people present took a collective breath. It was never good to keep an emperor waiting for too long... Especially when said emperor desired an answer to a rather important question."

"Finally the soldier in the middle, clad in Kanshou's colors, spoke up. "Most honoured Imperial Majesty... Please forgive us but what we—" He gestured towards his companions without looking, finding the floor absolutely fascinating to look at right now. "—have witnessed.... It... It's unbelievable. It's either a divine miracle or—"

"What?" The emperor sounded more and more impatient.

"*gulp* Well... First I have to say that when we came to the gates of Shi-syu, the two parties met up with each other – only to discover that the same fate had befallen us. ...On the eve before our departure, Kanshou-ouji went to the top of the highest tower, saying that he 'had promises keep'. When we implored him to wait, at least until the rain let up, he just looked at us. That look... That look alone told us that Kanshou-ouji would not budge from whatever he planned to do. So his personal guard could do nothing but follow him up the tower. Shortly before we would have gone out into the open, he bade us wait for his return, citing that he 'needed to do this alone'. Besides, he said with a half-smile, it would be enough if just one foolish man was soaked to the skin." The guard clenched his fists. "If we had gone out there with him, maybe then..."

Emperor Saihitei had gone still as a statue, his face an impenetrable mask. The only sign of life was the slow, near-imperceptible rise and fall of the Imperial jewellery on his chest. The rising feeling of dread, however, swept through the assembled court like a tidal wave.

".......To my dying day I won't forget what Kanshou-ouji shouted into the winds: "This I vow, before Nature's fury, before all kami: never again will this one fight against his brother. From now on until the End of All, let Kanshou and Bakuya be together, so that we may serve the emperor and the country of Saiunkoku as two sides of the same coin. May the Eight Sages bear witness to this!"—

—and then, lightning struck his raised sword." By now, tears were flowing freeling down the soldier's face. Had he looked around, he would have seen that he was not the only one – but he didn't. He was too intent on finishing his tale to notice. "When we, me and the other soldiers present could see again, there...there...*sob*...was nothing _there_ anymore. Kanshou-ouji was just... _gone_!"

The emperor's face could have been made of marble, so emotionless did he appear to be.

Then the soldier on the right, clad in Bakuya's colours, continued, "......all we could find were these." He shuffled forwards on his knees, opening the small chast he had carried and placed a square piece of silk on the floor. Slowly, he took piece after small piece of burnt, twisted metall and the occasional piece of charred cloth out of the chest and placed it on the silk. His counterpart on the left did likewise.

Again, you could have heard a pin drop. This time, however, the silence was that of barely restrained grief. Had anyone bothered to look, they would have seen Emperor Saihitei gripping the arms of his throne hard enough to leave dents. (In fact, you can probably see them to this day.) But again, no one dared to look.

When the soldiers were finished, they shuffled backwards, until they were even with their companion. Their heads were bowed, awaiting what was to come with the kind of equanimity that comes only after great endeavours.

For a long while, silence reigned.

Then Saihitei spoke up, his voice shaking only ever-so-slightly. "What should have been a day of joy for Us has turned into a day of great sorrow. We have lost Our two beloved sons..."

All eyes were riveted to the emperor.

"Kaji-san, Kitaero-san!"

Two distinguished-looking officials in rather modest robes stepped forward, bowing.

"I— _We_ want you to each take one of these mounds of metal and make a sword of it. Mix star metal into them, too. Hopefully, that way Our prayers might reach them even in the heavens. Since We failed to reunite them in live, let them be together in death at least."

And as Emperor Saihitei had ordered, so it was done. Each smith produced a sword without parallel, each easily cited as their masterpiece, edge and blade forever sharp, hilt and sheath each in Kanshou's and Bakuya's signature colours: Kanshou a gleaming white and Bakuya a glittering black. They were as much alike as they were different, just like the princes had been. Furthermore it was decreed that, since these twin swords were of so immeasurable a value, they were to be kept together and only given to a warrior of great merit – as an emperor's personal sign of favor. In case of their being no such person, Kanshou and Bakuya were to be kept here, together. There has been no such man for.....the last two hundred years, I think."

Sou Taifu, veteran of many wars and Grand General of Saiunkou, sat back wearily and straightened. ".....And that is the story of Kanshou and Bakuya."

Seien stared at nothing in particular, still thinking about the story they had just heard. Ryuuki, however, couldn't help but think of one thing he thought of as 'not right'.

".....That's wrong!" the younger prince timidly dared to say.

"....." Sou Taifu blinked. "What is, ouji?"

"Kanshou and Bakuya are not together." Ryuuki gestured at the twin swords on the table. "See? Each one is still apart from the other!!"

Seien just kept quiet, curious what his beloved little brother had to say. The only thing he did was tighten his embrace of Ryuuki a little to show his support.

Had Sou Taifu not been who he was, his jaw would have dropped in astonishment. As it was he found himself evaluating young Ryuuki anew. Maybe he should start paying more attention to the fifth prince after all... What had the little prince seen that nobody before him had?

Before either of them could react, Ryuuki had grabbed the hilts and pulled them from their sheaths. This action, however, sent the small body tumbling from his brother's lap onto the floor.

"Ryuuki!"

"Ouji!

Both Seien and Sou Taifu were afraid that the prince had hurt himself with this reckless action. Used to rough tumblings and nasty falls from dealing with his elder brothers – Seien-aniue being the beloved exception! – Ryuuki stood back up almost immediately.

While Seien was still deciding on whether to hurry Ryuuki to Tou-isha to check for injuries or just squeeze the life out of him for scaring his big brother like that, Grand General Sou Taifu waited, curious to see what the youngest prince would do.

Ryuuki walked back towards the table, gently placed Bakuya back down and took up the white hilt of Kanshou. Then, with some difficulties due to his size and general inexperience with swords, he carefully slid the white hilt of Kanshou into what had been Bakuya's black sheath. After putting down Kanshou, he picked up black-hilted Bakuya and slid the sword into the white sheath. When he had finished what he wanted to do, Ryuuki turned around to Seien and Sou Taifu.

"See? _Now_ they are together again!" He beamed at them.

Seien smiled softly. How like Ryuuki to see and think of what certainly no one else would! Sou Taifu's face, for once, showed a rare real smile. "Well done, your highness." The Grand General sketched a short bow. "......how would you like to learn the way of the sword for real? Who knows, you might even give your brother a run for his money one day..."

"Hontou ni!?" Ryuuki couldn't believe it. No one except Shouka-sama had ever before offered to teach him _anything_ and here was the best swordsman – after Seien-aniue, of course! – offering to teach him!

Sou Taifu nodded, his eyes dancing with hidden mirth at Ryuuki's eagerness.

"Yay! Yay!" Ryuuki glomped his brother in joy. "When can we start....!?"

At this, the Grand General actually laughed. "Tomorrow. When we're through with your first lesson, maybe you won't be that eager anymore, hm? But for now, I think we should all go to bed and sleep." And with that, the large man herded the young princes out of the room and on their way back to their long-overdue beds.

As the door slowly closed, nobody saw the ghostly outlines of two princes rise from the swords and bow deeply towards the princes' retreating backs before finally, _finally_ embracing each other after hundreds of years of waiting.

  


  


~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

OMAKE

  


"Your Majesty! The Vice-Secretary of Civil Affairs, Li Kouyu-dono is looking for you!"

"Eep! Seie—erm, Seiran, help!!"

"*sweatdrop* .....what _were_ you daydreaming about anyway, Your Majesty?"

"Only... *smile* ...a treasured memory of Seien-aniue and me listening to the story of two brothers at midnight......"

Shi Seiran's countenance softened imperceptibly, a slight smile flickering over his handsome features. "Understood. However, if I may recommend looking for Li Kouyu-dono soon? Preferably _before_ he ends up in the women's baths...? _Again_.

Hidden behind a conveniently placed cluster of bushes, Sou Taifu calmly sipped his afternoon tea, marvelling once more at how everything had played out since then.

  


  


  


**Author's Note:**

> So...? How did I do.....?  
> (a.k.a. _Constructive_ comments and criticism are always welcomed. Flames will be used to light Kouyuu's way or heat Kou Shouka's house.)
> 
> Author's Notes:  
>  **0.** BTW, for some reason, I kept trying to write 'Byakuya' instead of 'Bakuya'... Shouldn't have simultaneously gotten involved with _Bleach_ at that time, hm? ;-P  
>  **1.** BUWA———DON!! – sound of lightning striking (buwa = explosion + don = BIG impact)  
>  **2.** Does anyone _else_ get confused by the three Grand Officals' names...? Well, since I did, here's an explanation:  
>  _Shou Taishi_ \- the one who 'employed' Shuurei as consort ('Taishi' is his title and _not_ his name.)  
>  _Sa Taiho_ \- the head of the Sa clan, is always with Shou ('Taiho' is Sa Enjun's _title_.)  
>  _Sou Taifu_ \- the big (retired) general with dark hair ('Taifu' is his title, _not_ his name.)  
>  **3.** Honestly, I have _no_ idea of Saiunkoku's geography! (Except that there are eight provinces and that all eight provinces and families are named after colours. ^.^;;)  
>  **4.** What I Learned From Writing this fic:  
>  4.1. Pointing a long, metallic object upwards during a thunderstorm can lead to grave consequences.  
> 4.2. Inspiration can strike at the oddest places and times, too! Please don't ask!  
> 4.3. Not that I'm obsessed with _Bleach_ or anything... But why do I keep wanting to type 'Byakuya' instead of 'Bakuya'...? ^.^;;  
> 4.4. I'm not really up-to-date both with the subbed 2nd Season and the RAWs of "Saiunkoku" but... Wikipedia says, concerning Sou Taifu, that ' _He often knows the plans that Taishi comes up with and is aware of the actual existence of the Sages._ \- doesn't that make you wonder whether he IS one of them, himself? (How else did he know so many details about Kanshou and Bakuya? *major sweatdrop* No, wait, I made up that one... ~^__^~;;;)  
>  4.5. Chocolate gives energy, tastes good and doesn't complain at the late hours you're pulling over writing/finishing something! (People around you might, though...)


End file.
